Hollywood’s New Inflection Point Isn’t What It Seems

Almost a decade and a half ago, producer Scott Glassgold came across a short film on Vimeo about a woman who claimed to have encountered an alien. The creators, Zeek Earl and Chris Caldwell, presented a unique science-fiction story that displayed a specific storytelling style. Intrigued by their work, Glassgold reached out to introduce the duo to Hollywood as promising directing talent.

This marked an early instance for Glassgold in utilizing the internet as a means to discover ideas and connect with artists. However, he later realized that Hollywood was not universally open to transforming such material into feature-length films, particularly when unknown creators with internet backgrounds were involved. Despite this, Earl and Caldwell managed to secure independent financing, steering the project away from the development hell often experienced by similar projects.

This was the initial phase of Hollywood's relationship with internet-born talent, far removed from the industry's more recent, positive perception of digital-native creators. Recent box-office successes have demonstrated that Hollywood's approach to digital-native talent has evolved significantly. Films such as Backrooms, directed by Kane Parsons, A24's highest-grossing movie, Obsession, a horror-comedy by Curry Barker, and Iron Lung, a game adaptation released by Markiplier, have all achieved notable financial success. These films illustrate Hollywood's newfound appreciation for works originating from the internet.

Hollywood is now actively seeking similar opportunities, with several projects inspired by online content entering development, including Siren Head, Cartoon Cat, Seasons, and The Mandela Catalogue. The latter, based on a popular YouTube horror series, attracted an 11-studio bidding war, with Steven Spielberg taking on a producer role. Aaron B. Koontz, a producer for Mandela, acknowledged the newfound validation and overwhelming interest from Hollywood executives in digital creators.

However, Shawn Levy, whose production company 21 Laps contributed to Backrooms and Seasons, cautioned that these recent developments might merely signify a temporary frenzy rather than a fundamental shift in the industry. Levy emphasized that most high-risk bets often fail to yield significant results. While Hollywood has recognized the potential for discovering new auteurs and franchises on the web, the industry must go beyond merely mining ideas from the internet.

The path to creating successful movies inspired by online content requires understanding and respecting the unique sensibilities of digital-native audiences.